Tag Archives: design

Kilim Pillow

Posted on June 9, 2018 by twostrands

Information on the Kilim Pillow design is now available through Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com. You can also find this pattern on Ravelry here. Unfortunately, Hubro was recently discontinued. The suggested gauge on Hubro’s ball band was 10 stitches to … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged Dale, design, fair isle, hubro, Kilim, knit, knitting pattern, pillow, quick, super bulky, wool | Leave a comment

Calling Scotland

Posted on January 5, 2018 by twostrands

“Calling Scotland” is my new Fair Isle style ladies’ hat and fingerless mittens set knitting design, knit in Jamieson’s of Shetland “Shetland Spindrift” jumper / fingering weight 100% Shetland wool yarn. The PDF for the set is available from me, … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged Calling Scotland, design, fair isle knitting, hat, jamieson's, knitting kit, knitting pattern, ladies, mittens, pdf, shetland wool, spindrift, yarn | Leave a comment

The Flourishing Scarf

Posted on November 4, 2016 by twostrands

UPDATE: This design is now available through Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com. You’ll find the pattern here.

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged alpaca, circular knitting, Dale, Dalegarn, design, ECO Baby Wool, fair isle, knit | 2 Comments

Ivy Headband

Posted on December 14, 2015 by twostrands

My new, warm, soft, stranded, braided, purpled, ivy-covered headband: I used five different shades of sport weight alpaca yarn. You could use merino, superwash wool, cashmere – whatever type of DK / sport weight yarn knits to the right gauge, … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged alpaca, alpakka, Dale, design, fair isle, headband, ivy, knit, Knitting, norwegian, pattern, pdf | 1 Comment

NY Nordic Hat

Posted on June 9, 2015 by twostrands

It’s not easy for an old knitter to capture the interest of a frenetic teenage boy. But, when a few bags of Dale Garn Freestyle came through my door, sporting unmistakably neon colors, my youngest son, Mikey, practically pounced on … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged beanie, Dale, design, fair isle, freestyle, hat, knit, Knitting, neon, new york city, nordic, norwegian, NY, pattern, ski hat, worsted weight | 2 Comments

Val’s Tiger Lily Jacket

Posted on March 26, 2015 by twostrands

Yesterday, I received a delightful email from another one of my immensely talented customers, Val. It’s always a big thrill for me, to see the face behind the emails and phone calls. Turns out, not only is Val bright, funny … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged cardigan, Dale, Dale Garn, design, fair isle, jacket, kit, knit, Knitting, ladies, norway, norwegian, pattern, sport weight, stranded, tiger lily | Leave a comment

Interview on “How to become a Professional Knitter”

Posted on January 30, 2015 by twostrands

Robin Hunter recently interviewed me for her blog, “How to become a Professional Knitter”. It’s up there now, right…over…HERE!

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged business, career, design, designer, indy, interview, knitter, Knitting, Mary Ann Stephens, professional, robin hunter | 3 Comments

Andrea’s Spice Route Gloves

Posted on January 20, 2015 by twostrands

I thought you’d like to see the lovely result, above, that my customer, Andrea, shared on Ravelry. She knit my “Spice Route Gloves” design to a “T”, but in her own choice of colors. As a designer, I think it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged design, fair isle, fingering weight, gloves, knit, Knitting, Mary Ann Stephens, pattern, shetland wool, spice route gloves, spindrift | 4 Comments

Gentle Hat

Posted on December 23, 2014 by twostrands

At 85 years old, most every day for almost three years now, my mother has driven nearly an hour each way over rough, winding, often-icy, upstate roads. Her mission? To spend as much precious time as possible trying to eek … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged alpaca, alpakka, Dale Garn, design, fair isle, gentle, gift, hat, knit, Knitting, pretty, soft, warm, yarn | 5 Comments

On Flat Charts for Round Shapes

Posted on December 2, 2014 by twostrands

This popular post on using flat charts to knit rounds shapes has been moved to the “Technique” section of Mary Ann’s new website, MaryAnnStephens.com.

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Free Charts, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Technique | Tagged ball, chart, Christmas, design, fair isle, free, Knitting, norwegian, ornament, pattern, shapes, stranded, yarn | 8 Comments

Camissonia Mittens

Posted on September 22, 2014 by twostrands

My new “Camissonia Mittens“, sized to fit the average adult female hand. Knit in standard Fair Isle knitting technique, then (optionally) embroidered, using Dale Garn Alpakka throughout: The knitting kit is available through my on-line yarn shop, Kidsknits.com. It includes … Continue reading →

Posted in Fair Isle Knitting, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged alpaca, alpakka, Dale Garn, Dale Garn Alpakka, design, embroidery, fair isle, fair isle knitting, floral, knit, knitting pattern, ladies, Mary Ann Stephens, mittens, norwegian, stranded, yarn | Leave a comment

Chevron Fingerless Mittens

Posted on May 23, 2014 by twostrands

My “Chevron Fingerless Mittens”, sized for the average adult female hand, with fitted cuffs and gusseted thumbs. Knit in luxurious Dale of Norway Royal Alpakka. Use any three shades your heart desires. I used 19g of Slate 0007, 32g of … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged alpaca, colorwork, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, fair isle, fingerless, Knitting, knitting pattern, mittens, norwegian, stranded, yarn | 1 Comment

Free 2014 Chart

Posted on January 20, 2014 by twostrands

Whether you work “2014” into some wonderful chart work you have planned for this year, or embroider it in with duplicate stitch, once you’re done, may it someday spark sweet, sweet memories of the many fine times you had “way … Continue reading →

Posted in Free Charts, Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs | Tagged 2024, chart, cross stitch, date, design, embroidery, free, heirloom, historic, Knitting, needlepoint, needlework, traditional | 1 Comment

Tiger Lily, in the pink

Posted on June 5, 2013 by twostrands

Reason #352 why I love knitting: Merely by changing the shades of yarn we’re using, we can give an entirely new look to beloved, old designs. It’s true, I do lament when an “old favorite” shade is discontinued by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, New From Dale of Norway, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged circular knitting, color, colorwork, Dale, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, DIY, fair isle, fair isle knitting, falk, floral, Heilo, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting kit, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, lilies, lily, Mary Ann Stephens, nordic, nordic knitting, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, pattern, pdf, steeks, stranded, stranded knitting, sweater, wool, yarn | Leave a comment

“More monkeys, please!”

Posted on March 21, 2013 by twostrands

A common request around here lately: “More monkeys, please!” Today’s answer: “Coming right up!” You’re just one click away from one dozen new colorway ideas for my Monkey Hat using Dale of Norway Baby Ull yarn, our hands-down favorite for … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged baby, baby ull, boy, chart, circular knitting, color, colorwork, craft, Dale, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, DIY, fair isle, fair isle knitting, girl, hat, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting kit, knitting pattern, layette, Mary Ann Stephens, merino, new baby, newborn, Norwegian knitting, stranded, stranded knitting, superwash, yarn | Leave a comment

Shamrock Mittens

Posted on February 14, 2013 by twostrands

My new Shamrock Mittens, knit in Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift. Sized to fit an 8″ adult female palm circumference. The PDF is available for purchase and download through Ravelry. The Spindrift yarn (in natural white and…you guessed it…”leprechaun”) is available through … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged design, fair isle, fingering weight, irish, kit, knit, Knitting, knitting kit, latvian, Mary Ann Stephens, mittens, norwegian, pattern, shamrock, shetland, spindrift, st patricks day, stranded, wool, yarn | 1 Comment

Free Crochet Pattern – The Quickest, Easiest Hat

Posted on February 12, 2013 by twostrands

The “Blizzard of 2013” (the first one, at least) swept in this past Friday, bringing 30+ inches of snow to our area, along with frantic cries of “Ahhhh, what’s your quickest, easiest hat?!?!?” I was tempted to pull out some … Continue reading →

Posted in Free Crochet Patterns, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged basic, beanie, crochet, crocheted, Dale of Norway, design, easiest, easy, fast, flower, free, hat, pattern, quick, quickest, simple, warm, wool | 23 Comments

Riverside Cowl

Posted on October 29, 2012 by twostrands

My “Riverside Cowl” – knit in Dale of Norway Royal Alpakka yarn. Fair Isle and garter stitch on the outside, solid stockinette stitch on the lining, luxurious warmth all over. The kit is available through my on-line store, Kidsknits.com. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, New From Dale of Norway, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged alpaca, alpakka, cowl, Dale of Norway, dale of norway knitting, dale of norway royal alpakka, design, fair isle, fashion, gift, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting kit, knitting pattern, Mary Ann Stephens, neckwear, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, paisley, riverside, riverside cowl, unisex, yarn | Leave a comment

Sirdal

Posted on October 6, 2012 by twostrands

I’m very fortunate to have some tremendously talented customers. This past week, a charming coincidence arose: two of my wonderful customers showed me their very special renditions of Dale of Norway’s beloved “Sirdal” design, a traditional Norwegian knitting classic (which, … Continue reading →

Posted in Free Knitting Patterns, Knitting, New From Dale of Norway, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged baby, baby ull, circular knitting, colorwork, Dale, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, free knitting pattern, free pattern, Heilo, Kidsknits, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, nordic, nordic knitting, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, pattern, pdf, Sirdal, ski sweater, sport weight, steeks, stranded knitting, sweater, traditional, yarn | 9 Comments

Allamanda Hat

Posted on September 20, 2012 by twostrands

My new Allamanda Hat design. It’s easier than it looks. It’s first knit in typical Fair Isle style (no more than two colors at once.) When the knitting is done, you have the option to get carried away with some … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged beret, color, design, embroidered, embroidery, fair isle, fair isle design, fair isle hat, fair isle knitting, floral, hat, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting pattern, Mary Ann Stephens, norwegian, norwegian design, Norwegian knitting, shetland, slouched, slouched beret, slouched tam, stranded, tam, wool, yarn | 1 Comment

Monkey Hat

Posted on August 1, 2012 by twostrands

My new Monkey Hat design. Knit in Dale of Norway Baby Ull yarn for newborn and infant sizes. Knit in Dale of Norway Falk yarn for youth and teen / adult sizes. Kits with printed patterns available through Kidsknits.com. Personal-use … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting | Tagged adult, baby, baby hat, baby ull, child, Dale of Norway, design, fair isle, fair isle hat, falk yarn, hat, infant, kit, knit, Knitting, knitting pattern, monkey, monkey hat, newborn, nordic, norwegian, pattern, pdf, superwash, teen, yarn, youth | Leave a comment

Hedgerow Fingerless Mittens

Posted on April 24, 2012 by twostrands

My Hedgerow Fingerless Mittens require only two 50-g balls – 1 light, 1 dark – in your favorite shades of either Heilo or Falk. The instructions offer sizing for average adult & extra large adult. The PDF is available for … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged Dale, design, fair isle, falk, fingerless, fingerless mittens, Heilo, knit, Knitting, knitting pattern, Mary Ann Stephens, mittens, mitts, norwegian, pattern, pdf, stranded knitting, yarn | 1 Comment

The Nomad Earflap Hat

Posted on February 21, 2012 by twostrands

Knit in Dale of Norway Hubro yarn at a super speedy, yet oh-so-cozy 3 sts/inch. Choose any 3 contrasting shades of Hubro; you’ll need 1 ball of each. (If you have some Hubro on hand, you’ll want an entire 100g … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged chullo, chunky knit, Dale of Norway, design, earflap hat, fair isle, hat, hubro, knitting pattern, knitwear, Mary Ann Stephens, Norwegian knitting, pdf | Leave a comment

Zinnia Mittens, Twist Collective Winter 2011

Posted on November 15, 2011 by twostrands

Yippee, the new Twist Collective is out! There are so many beautiful designs in this issue! I’m honored to have my Zinnia mittens among them: The links: Zinnia on Twist Collective, main pattern page Zinnia on Twist Collective, detail page … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Norwegian Knitting, On Twist Collective, Uncategorized | Tagged baby ull, chart, circular knitting, color, colorwork, Dale, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, Mary Ann Stephens, mittens, nordic, nordic knitting, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, pdf, shetland wool, stranded, stranded knitting, twist collective, wool, yarn, zinnia | Leave a comment

Snow Day Hat…

Posted on October 5, 2011 by twostrands

…or “How I Survived A Sweltering September With One Easy Project”: And all it took was 2 balls of Dale of Norway Freestyle yarn (plus a lot of wishful thinking.) Are you starting to “Think Snow”, too? Here’s the PDF, … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs | Tagged beanie, cap, colorwork, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, hat, knit, Knitting, knitting pattern, nordic, nordic knitting, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, outerwear, pdf, ski hat, snow, snow day hat, snowflake, snowflake hat, snowflakes, stranded, stranded knitting, winter, yarn | Leave a comment

Ruth’s Tiger Lily

Posted on August 21, 2011 by twostrands

I want to share with you a wonderful photo I recently received from a very talented customer: That’s Ruth modeling her green version of my old Tiger Lily Jacket design. Isn’t her knitting just beautiful?! And I love those Falk … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged color, colorway, Dale, Dale of Norway, design, fair isle, falk, Heilo, jacket, knit, Knitting, knitwear, Mary Ann Stephens, norwegian, pattern, pdf, stranded, sweater, tiger lily, yarn | Leave a comment

Fair Isle Hat, Vogue Knitting Fall 2011

Posted on August 4, 2011 by twostrands

ETA: Link to PDF available through Vogue Knitting. That’s my “#08 Fair Isle Hat” that just came out in Vogue Knitting Fall 2011. While I was waiting for the black and white Cascade 220 Sport to arrive from Vogue Knitting … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Vogue Knitting | Tagged circular knitting, color, colorwork, Dale, Dale of Norway, Dalegarn, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, hat, Heilo, Kidsknits, knit, Knitting, knitting design, knitting magazine, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, Mary Ann Stephens, nordic, nordic knitting, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, pdf, stranded, stranded knitting, vogue, vogue knitting, wool, yarn | 2 Comments

Dale’s Ladybug design in my Girlybug colorway

Posted on June 30, 2011 by twostrands

Dale of Norway has an extraordinary number of beloved designs for children, but I guess the most beloved of all would have to be their “Marihone”, or “Ladybug”, sweater. I have more than a few customers whose first reaction, upon … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Uncategorized | Tagged baby, baby ull, baby yarn, color, color chart, colorway, colorwork, Dale, Dale of Norway, design, fair isle, girly, Kidsknits, knit, Knitting, lady bug, ladybug, layette, marihone, Mary Ann Stephens, norwegian, pastel, stranded, sweater, yarn | 11 Comments

Tulip Mittens, a Fair Isle / Norwegian / Turkish stranded knitting design

Posted on February 4, 2011 by twostrands

I knit my ladies’ Tulip Mittens in 3 shades of Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift jumper weight wool – two 25g balls for the medium blue, “Merlin”, one ball of the light “Natural White” and one ball of the dark “Prussian Blue”. … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Special Sales, Uncategorized | Tagged circular knitting, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, jamieson's, jamieson's spindrift, Knitting, knitting kit, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, latvian mittens, mittens, mitts, Norwegian knitting, pattern pdf, shetland spindrift, shetland wool, spindrift, stranded knitting, wool, wool yarn, yarn | 3 Comments

Amaryllis Hat, a Fair Isle / Norwegian knitting design for a ladies’ hat

Posted on May 10, 2010 by twostrands

My new ladies’ Amaryllis Hat coordinates with my old Amaryllis Mittens. Kits for the hat and/or mittens are now available through my Kidsknits site.

Posted in Knitting, Mary Ann's Designs, Uncategorized | Tagged amaryllis, amaryllis hat, beret, circular knitting, design, fair isle, fair isle knitting, hat, knit, Knitting, knitting kit, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, Mary Ann Stephens, norwegian, Norwegian knitting, pdf, tam | 2 Comments

Polar Chullo on Winter ’09 Twist Collective – a Fair Isle earflap hat design

Posted on November 15, 2009 by twostrands

Polar Chullo, sized for adults, knit in Jamieson’s Shetland Spindrift That’s my Polar Chullo design which you can now find in the Winter 2009 Edition of Twist Collective. The pattern, either printed or as an emailed PDF, yarn packs and kits (pattern … Continue reading →

Posted in Mary Ann's Designs, On Twist Collective, Uncategorized | Tagged cap, chullo, circular knitting, design, earflap, earflap hat, fair isle, fair isle knitting, hat, jamieson's, jamieson's shetland spindrift, knit, Knitting, knitting pattern, knitting pattern pdf, Mary Ann Stephens, nordic, pdf, polar bear hat, polar bears, Polar Chullo, shetland wool, shetland yarn, spindrift yarn, twist collective, yarn | 11 Comments

Transatlantic Name Calling

Posted on October 16, 2009 by twostrands

Last week, all eleven new Heilo colors arrived. What fun! Delving into that colorful pile of woolly goodness brought back memories of leaping into piles of freshly-raked leaves and revelling in nature’s colors or filling goodie bags from the candy … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, New From Dale of Norway, Uncategorized | Tagged color, color names, Dale of Norway, design, Heilo, Knitting, nordic knitting, Norwegian knitting, yarn | 2 Comments

Boggled by Toggles

Posted on October 8, 2009 by twostrands

Have any of you seen the ready-to-wear version of the Dale of Norway Vancouver sweater? You can see a great photo of it here. Now compare that one to the handknit version shown in DofN’s Vancouver 2010 Book 213 here. … Continue reading →

Posted in Knitting, New From Dale of Norway, Uncategorized | Tagged Dale of Norway, design, Knitting, norwegian, olympic sweater, toggle, Vancouver | 2 Comments

Fair Isle Repeat Offenders – managing motif layouts in Fair Isle knitting

Posted on April 2, 2008 by twostrands

We all learned at a very young age that even numbers split nicely and odd numbers create those troublesome leftovers, remainders. For some, that thought alone is the only seed needed to sprout an appreciation for optimal knitting design layout. … Continue reading →